On September 6th and 7th, the labor federation hosted almost 300 delegates, including local labor leaders and activists, at the organization’s Biennial Convention in Orlando to elect new leaders and chart the course of the organization for the next two years. Significant elections and resolutions took place, so without further ado, here are your 2025 Biennial Convention Highlights!
New Leadership!
FL AFL-CIO President Kimberly Holdridge, who has been serving as the Interim President since late 2024, was unanimously elected by convention delegates to fill the role for a full term. Following her election, President Holdridge issued the following statement:
“I am honored and humbled to have been given this opportunity by my sisters and brothers to lead this organization and the movement behind it that I love so much. Working families, union and non-union alike, are struggling to find freedom, fairness and security in a time when their own governments are making their lives more difficult. I am so confident that working together, the Florida AFL-CIO and our allies can rise to meet this moment, overcome our challenges and fight at the ballot box and in the halls of Tallahassee and Washington D.C. to build brighter futures for all workers and their families.”
The delegates also unanimously elected Maira Rivera to serve as their new Secretary-Treasurer for the Florida AFL-CIO. Maira brings to the role over 30 years of service as an educator and union leader here in Florida. As a certified educator, she currently serves as the Dean of an elementary school in Orange County Public Schools (OCPS), and her advocacy includes efforts in immigration, voter access, affordable housing, fair wages, and improved working conditions for our public sector workers. Following her election Rivera issued the following statement:
“I am committed to building a stronger, more unified labor movement—one that uplifts every worker and ensures economic dignity, equity, and justice for all.”
In addition to electing the two principal officers, the delegates also elected a new Executive Board, comprised of union leaders and activists from across the state and all the trades and professions that make up Florida’s Labor Movement. This new board is one of the most diverse in our history and will work with our officers to continue to sustain and expand our movement and programs in these difficult times. To view the full changes to the board, make sure to visit our updated Officers and Executive Board pages. Congratulations and solidarity to all of our new and returning members!
2025 Workshops
Delegates also participated in two dynamic workshops offered by our national partners designed to better equip our activists with the tools they need to navigate these difficult times. The first workshop, taught by AFL-CIO Leadership & Org. Development Lead Coordinator Kate Shaughnessy, was entitled “Meeting the Moment with Nonviolent Action” and focused on the attacks we are seeing on our Democracy itself, focusing on how democratic backsliding is occurring in America, how to recognize it, and what role the labor movement can play in reversing the backslide through mass mobilization and nonviolent noncooperation. The second workshop, “Frontline Solidarity: Immigration and the Labor Movement,” focused on how immigration enforcement around the country is hurting working families, creating disruption in our workplaces and our economy. AFL-CIO Specialist on Immigration and Labor Stephanie Sepulveda helped us dive into the complex nature of our immigration system, the threats that immigrant workers and their families are facing and provided tools and strategies for how the labor movement can respond to these escalating attacks. Thanks again to both Kate and Stephanie for putting together these amazing workshops for our members!
Looking Ahead to the Future
The 2025 Convention also closed out a number of significant resolutions, including a restructuring move to combine future Florida AFL-CIO conventions.
Member should be advised that following the conclusion of next year’s 2026 COPE Convention, all future conventions will be held as a combined full session of both the Biennial and COPE Endorsing Convention. Starting in 2028, delegates will be able to convene to both elect new leadership and vote on endorsements, key issues, constitutional amendments at one unified event every two years. This move is expected to reduce staffing costs and produce significant savings for the FL AFL-CIO and our members, allowing us to better be able to allocate resources to do what we do best: fight for working families!
Thank you to all of the union members and staff who helped us execute such a great convention this year. We look forward to seeing you all again at the 2026 COPE Convention. In Solidarity!